HOW MUCH DO YOU WEAR?

A missionary at home on furlough was invited to a dinner at a great summer resort, where he met many women of prominence & position.

After dinner he went to his room & wrote a letter to his wife. He said:

"Dear Wife: I've had dinner at the great Hotel. The company was wonderful. I saw strange things today. Many women were present. There were some who wore, to my certain knowledge, one church, 40 organs & 20 libraries."

In his great longing for money to provide the gospel for hungering millions, he could not refrain from estimating the silks & diamonds of the guests at the dinner in terms of his people's need.

If God sends us money to send to perishing millions the good news of a Saviour from sin & we spend it in needless luxuries, what does He think of it?

- (moreillustrations.com)

Rom 14:12 (NET): "Therefore, each of us will give an account of himself to God."

"When we receive from God and hold on to what we have received selfishly, we die spiritually." - Zac Poonen.

MONEY OR SOULS?

Suppose someone were to offer you a $1000 for every soul you would earnestly try to lead to Christ, would you endeavor to lead any more souls to Him than you are endeavoring to do now?
 
Is it possible that you would attempt to do for money what you hesitate or shrink from doing now in obedience to God’s command?
 
Is your love of money stronger than your love of God or souls?
 
- (ministry127.com)
 
Phil 2:19-21 (NIV): “I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon... I have no one else like him … For everyone looks out for their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ.”
 
Let us return to the basic things of the Word of God and prayer and soul winning and revival. Let us pray, "O God, send a revival. Let it begin in me." -  Lee Roberson.
 

SERVING TO GIVE OR GET?

Selfish service is impressed with the “big deal.” True service finds it almost impossible to distinguish the small from the large service.

Selfish service requires external rewards. True service rests contented in hiddenness.

Selfish service is highly concerned about results. True service is free of the need to calculate results.

Selfish service picks and chooses whom to serve. True service is indiscriminate in its ministry.

Selfish service is affected by moods and whims. True service ministers simply and purely.

- (ministry127.com)

Phi 2:3 (ERV): “In whatever you do, don’t let selfishness or pride be your guide. Be humble, and honor others more than yourselves.”

“The highest form of worship is the worship of unselfish Christian service.” -  Billy Graham.

TIME

Time is as much a trusteeship as money & there are no capitalists.

We cannot "invest" it to use in the future, but we can, by grace, use it fruitfully now & have the blessing & results in the future, to the glory of God.

Each day is a sacred trust & never returns. Each hour is a privilege.

A wasted moment & a wasted coin are alike saddening to a believer.

- The Student of Scripture. (moreillustrations.com)

Ep 5:15-17 (WEB): “Therefore watch carefully how you walk, not as unwise, but as wise; redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Therefore, don’t be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.”

“Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can.” -  Charles Wesley.

FORTUNE HUNTERS

Mary - "I've just heard of a case where a man married a girl on his deathbed so she could have his millions when he was gone. Could you love a girl like that?"

Jack - "That's just the kind of a girl I could love. What's her address?"

- (moreillustrations.com)

Pro 11:4 (GNT): “Riches will do you no good on the day you face death, but honesty can save your life.”

“He is a poor man who can only measure his wealth in dollars.” -  Woodrow Kroll.

Pro 11:28 (ESV): “Whoever trusts in his riches will fall, but the righteous will flourish like a green leaf.”

“Living to create an earthly legacy is a short-sighted goal.” -  Rick Warren.

HANDLING CRITICISM

George Whitefield was a famed English evangelist in the 1700s. He led many meetings where hundreds of people come to Christ.

Yet for all the good he did, he was not without his critics. He very often received letters of criticism, mockery, or hateful correction.

Sometimes he would become discouraged by the letters, but he soon learned that the best response to a critic was openness & honesty.

After receiving a letter of personal attack, he wrote one simple reply to its sender:

“I thank you heartily for your letter. As for what you & my other enemies are saying against me, I know worse things about myself than you will ever say about me.”

With Love in Christ.

George Whitefield.

- (ministry127.com)

“Since God intends to make you like Jesus, He will take you through the same experiences Jesus went through. That includes loneliness, temptation, stress, criticism, rejection, and many other problems.” -  Rick Warren.

1 Pet 3:9 (NIRV): “Don’t pay back evil with evil. Don’t pay back unkind words with unkind words. Instead, pay back evil with kind words. This is what you have been chosen to do. You will receive a blessing by doing this.”

GOD IS FAITHFUL

Spurgeon once said: "Sometimes God sends His love letters in black-edged envelopes."

God allows us to taste the bitterness of want & the desolation of bereavement. If you have lived many years, you have passed through the narrows.

We have all been there & it is not always easy to see the Divine control. It looks as if things have got out of hand & somehow or other we have been forgotten.

When there is no one at hand to say it to you, say to yourself: "God is faithful, who will not suffer the pain to exceed the measurement of my endurance."

- John MacDeath. (moreillustrations.com)

1 Cor 1:9 (NIV): “God is faithful, who has called you into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.”

“If God was faithful to you yesterday, you have reason to trust Him for tomorrow.” -  Woodrow Kroll.

“Spiritual advancement is measured by faithful obedience.” -  Watchman Nee.